stubborn pony

[equestrian7474]

whenever i ride my horse and she isn’t following another horse, she goes great and she’s very responsive but about halfway through she just refuses to do anything i ask and goes around in circles. i really don’t know what to do. any suggestions?

 

[jkitten]

Have you ruled out pain/fitness issues? If she's great for a consistent length of time and then suddenly becomes awkward for no apparent reason, it could be that she's either tired out by that point or something has become uncomfortable/painful enough to be really bothering her by then.

Is it the same spot or activity she becomes difficult in, or does it vary?

 

[equestrian7474]

Have you ruled out pain/fitness issues? If she's great for a consistent length of time and then suddenly becomes awkward for no apparent reason, it could be that she's either tired out by that point or something has become uncomfortable/painful enough to be really bothering her by then.

Is it the same spot or activity she becomes difficult in, or does it vary?

I have no problem when I’m following another horse, she’ll be consistent for the full 1 hour ride without any issues and she’ll be very forward going. It’s when I’m riding alone when she’ll be difficult.

When she does start to get difficult, the second I bring her near another horse she’s back to her usual self. If there are other horses in the arena, she’ll drag me towards them and want to follow them.

 

[AmyMay]

She’s napping. And it can be tricky to resolve. You need time, patience and commitment.

 

[equestrian7474]

She’s napping. And it can be tricky to resolve. You need time, patience and commitment.

Thanks! Are there any particular excercises I can do with her to help? I have a lot of time on my hands to work with her, I’m just not sure where to start.

 

[AmyMay]

For me a napping horse was cured by repetition and making sure I had all the time in the world. No flapping around, shouting or getting stressed.

The minute you feel her starting to nap you can either try to strongly ride her through it or you can anticipate the stop and ask for the stop yourself before she does it. If you go for the ‘stop’ option you have to be prepared to sit there for about 5 mins (if it’s safe to do so). You then ask her to walk on. If she won’t just sit there until she offers to move forward. The minute she moves forward ask for halt. 30 seconds and then ask to walk on. And carry on. Don’t be tempted to ask for trot - a good strong walk is much easier to manage.

You can also do things like leg yield and shoulder in etc to keep her thinking.

 

[Lucky788]

Have you got a knowledgable instructor who can help?

What’s she like if you do ground work rather than ride?

 

[[139672]]

I had this problem with my 2nd pony. He would stop and turn his head round to look at me. The last time he ever did it I sat there for about 40 minutes before he’d move and I spent the whole time sobbing ?. He suddenly walked forward and he never ever did it again after that. Very strange.